


I'll Be There (Cause That's What Friends Are For)

by found_the_good_things



Category: We Are The Tigers - Allen
Genre: Gen, and some team gc shenanigans, and the tigers are just bad at alternating pronouns, i haven't written in past tense in a while because of the voltron au, i just took all my hcs and threw them into a fic and this is the result, kate is mattie's chaotic bad influence older sister, kate uses she/they because i said so, look you have no proof that she doesn't canonically use she/they, mainly mattie's pov with kate at the end, there's a little kateva, this is me celebrating the start of winter break
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:54:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28225692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/found_the_good_things/pseuds/found_the_good_things
Summary: Kate gets bored one afternoon, and Mattie is free.So they have a fluffy sleepover and make a bad decision or two.
Relationships: Kate & Mattie (We Are The Tigers)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 23





	I'll Be There (Cause That's What Friends Are For)

**Author's Note:**

> Minor tw: there is a mention of alcohol, but it's very brief, and Kate doesn't have very good relationships with their parents.

Tigers GC!!!!

Kate (the scary one): hey is anyone up for doing something fun

Cairo (captain): I hate when you say that

Kate (the scary one): ok so cai is out

Annleigh (beat someone up don't cross her): Katherine.

Kate (the scary one): that literally isn't my name

Annleigh (beat someone up don't cross her): Well, I don't know your actual full name.

Eva (the one who didn't commit a crime): I do

Kate (the scary one): don't you fucking dare

Kate (the scary one): anyways my question still stands

I'm up for it!!!! :D

Kate (the scary one): cool

Cairo (the captain): Please don't get hurt

Kate (the scary one): :)

Annleigh (beat someone up don't cross her): KATHERINE

Kate (the scary one): THAT CONTINUES TO NOT BE MY NAME

  
  


Kate (the scary one)

ok so my stupid idea is i wanna impulsively dye my hair and wanna do it with someone

Why not Eva?

if she dyed her hair her grandma would have a heart attack

she's already on thin ice with the piercing

and anyways i have other friends

…

sorry

you don't have to

No, I want to!!!! Let's do it!!!! 😁😁😁

ok cool

can i pick you up in 15?

Yeah!!!

  
  


"Sorry," Kate said as they parked in their driveway. "I'm not a great driver."

"You're fine at it!" Mattie lied. That had actually been the most terrifying drive of her life.

Kate laughed. "Yeah, I appreciate the sentiment, but I know I can't drive. Trust me, I hear it from Eva and my sisters all the time."

"Oh." Mattie didn't know what to say to that.

Kate stuck her keys in her pocket and got out of the car. "Sorry, I'm not great at conversation."

"It's okay, me neither."

Kate glanced over their shoulder at Mattie and grinned.

Mattie followed her upstairs to the bathroom, clutching the tube of hair dye in her hands. She'd picked out pink after some deliberation, and Kate had immediately picked blue without a second thought. They'd also gotten two things of bleach, since they both had dark hair. Mattie had always thought Kate's hair was black, but during the drive (which, she realized, was the first time she'd ever been alone with Kate), she'd figured out that it was actually just really dark brown.

"Ok, I haven't done this before and I'm not quite sure what you're supposed to do," Kate said, dumping her handful of dye and bleach on the counter. "I'm gonna run down to the basement and grab some spare towels, okay? Can you read the instructions?"

"Yeah, sure!"

Kate left the bathroom, and when Mattie glanced out the door, they slid down the railing instead of using the stairs. Mattie's stomach flipped over, but Kate reached the bottom without falling and quickly disappeared down the hallway. Mattie turned her attention back to the hair dye, but then realized it might be a good idea to look at the bleach first.

"Alright, that took too long to find," said Kate's voice. Mattie jumped, but tried to play it off as nothing, and luckily Kate didn't comment on it. "My mom got bored last week and reorganized, like, the entire basement. For whatever reason the old towels got put in my dad's office?"

Mattie laughed.

"Yeah, I don't fucking know." Kate sat down on the edge of the bathtub and smiled at Mattie. She was a lot less scary when she smiled, Mattie noticed. "Anyways, what are we supposed to do?"

"Oh, um." Mattie handed Kate one of the tubes of bleach, keeping the other for herself. "So I think we have to mix that up? And it says to just let it sit until it's lightened, but it doesn't say how long. Probably a while, we both have really dark hair."

Kate made a face. "Ugh, I am  _ so _ not a patient person."

"Sucks for you." Mattie's eyes widened as she said it - where did she get that kind of bravery?!? That was not something she normally said! Oh, no, was Kate mad?

But Kate didn't  _ seem _ mad. They actually looked kinda shocked, but then they grinned. "Okay, yeah, I deserved that." She clapped her hands once. "Okay, so we probably should get started then, yeah?"

"Oh, uh, yeah!"

"Ok, so we have a bunch of plastic bowls in the garage," Kate said. "They're off to the left, in the cabinet next to the litter boxes. Can you run and grab a few? I'm gonna change, this is Eva's shirt and she might kill me if I get dye on it."

"Yeah, I think so!"

"Cool."

~

"Jesus  _ fucking _ Christ, it's been like an hour and a half," Kate complained.

"I mean, I think it looks lighter," Mattie offered.

"Barely."

"No, there's definitely a change." Mattie studied her own hair. "See?" There actually was kind of a significant change, but Mattie did have to admit, it probably could've been lighter.

Kate sighed. "Yeah, you're right. Like I said - I'm not that patient."

Mattie chewed her lip. In the past hour and a half, Kate had helped her with her Honors Government homework, they'd played a game of checkers (Mattie won), and then Kate had dropped their biology binder and they'd had to pick up all the papers and put them back in order. Before today, Mattie's longest conversation with Kate had lasted two minutes, but they'd been hanging out for two hours and it wasn't that weird. Kate was scary, but actually pretty nice and kinda cool.

"Okay, let's say another half hour? Maybe forty five minutes?" Kate suggested. "I'm not waiting any longer than that."

"Uh, sure, yeah!"

"Wait, shit, what time do you have to get home?" Kate asked, eyes widening.

"I don't, like, have anything I need to get done," Mattie assured them. "I'll text my parents, but I bet they'd let me stay as long as it takes to finish this." Mattie's parents still didn't like the rest of the squad (minus Eva) that much, but she was sure they'd be glad she was making friends and let her stay.

"Okay, so we have a bit more time to kill." Kate hopped up on the counter, sitting cross-legged. "Anything you wanna do?"

"Um. I-I don't know?" Mattie was  _ not good _ at deciding what to do.

"Let's go find a cat," Kate decided for her, and Mattie breathed a sigh of relief.

Kate led the way down the stairs (slid down the banister again), and Mattie followed. No cats in the living room, and the one in the basement bit Kate's hand, so they left him alone.

"Okay, Inigo is probably outside," Kate said. "He literally only comes inside for food and to sleep."

"Inigo… like the guy from the  _ Princess Bride _ ?" Mattie asked.

"Yeah! My sister Chloe was going through a phase where it was the only movie she'd watch when we got him," Kate explained. "She named him, Kelly named Sir Albert - that's the one that just bit me, little asshole - and I got to name Annabeth." She shrugged. "13 year old Kate had a serious Percy Jackson phase. I wore my Camp Half-Blood shirt, like, every day."

Mattie giggled. "I did that, too! Except I had a Camp Jupiter shirt."

Kate made a face. "I think Camp Jupiter would have way too many rules for me. Plus, I'd rather not get banned from New Rome or whatever for sassing a praetor or something."

"Yeah, but you'd actually get to live past 17," Mattie pointed out.

"Touché, but I still think Camp Half-Blood is superior."

"What does it feel like, being that wrong?"

Kate paused on the stairs upstairs to laugh. "Oh my God, dude."

"Uh, sorry-"

"Don't apologise! I'm not mad." Kate grinned back at her. "C'mon, I bet Annabeth is in my room."

Kate's room was all the way down the hall. The door was closed, and when Kate opened it, it was kinda dark. Kate went to open the window, and Mattie looked around for a cat. The floor had scattered clothes and books, and the bed was a haphazard pile of blankets and pillows. The desk and dresser were both covered in papers and a few granola bar wrappers, and there were two empty water glasses on the nightstand.

"Um, sorry about the mess," Kate said, their voice suddenly sounding nervous. "I, um. I haven't really been doing great lately? I can't get myself to clean. Sorry."

That was the closest she'd ever come to opening up, and Mattie was kind of surprised. "It's okay," she promised. "It's nowhere near as bad as my brother's. At least you can see floor in here."

Kate cracked a smile. "Good to know I'm cleaner than a twelve year old boy."

There was a fluffy calico cat on the desk, on top of a pile of papers, and Kate sighed as they picked her up. "You know you're not supposed to go on my desk, you little shit," she murmured to the cat, kissing her forehead.

Mattie couldn't help herself as she glanced at the papers, and she gasped a little at what she saw. "Did you draw that?"

Kate looked at where Mattie was looking. "Oh, um, yeah. It's- it's for Eva. We're six months next week, so…"

"Can I look?" Mattie asked, and at Kate's nod, she picked up the drawing. She recognized it from Eva's Instagram a few weeks ago - the two of them asleep together. "Kate, this is incredible! Like, it looks like a photograph."

"Thanks," Kate said, their voice muffled - they'd buried the lower half of her face in Annabeth's thick fur. "I just… wanted to do something special for her."

"She'll love it." Mattie set it back on the desk. "You're a great artist."

"Thank you." Mattie couldn't see Kate's mouth, but she hoped they were smiling. "C'mon, let's take this little shit outside."

Mattie hoped she hadn't overstepped as she followed Kate back downstairs. Kate was telling some story about Annabeth getting into trouble with the neighbor's dog, and now she was only allowed outside with supervision, but Mattie was only half listening.

"I like hanging out with you," she said quietly while they watched Annabeth chase a couple leaves blowing in the wind.

Kate smiled a lopsided smile at her. "I like hanging out with you, too."

They probably stayed outside with the cat for almost an hour, but then Mattie noticed Kate's hair looked pretty light, so they spent five minutes chasing the cat around the lawn to bring her inside so they could put the dye in.

"Okay, we're supposed to apply the dye onto dry hair," Kate said while Mattie finished rinsing out the bleach. "I always just let my hair air dry. I'm gonna go find a hair dryer in my parents' bathroom, okay?"

Mattie nodded, and Kate left, their footsteps on the hardwood floor muffled by their socks. Mattie texted her parents real quick, and they reminded her that it was getting late.

"Everything okay?" Kate asked. Mattie glanced up at her - she was plugging a bright red hair dryer into the wall.

"It's almost 7:30," Mattie told her. "My parents don't like me staying out this late."

Kate didn't say anything for a moment, and when Mattie looked up again, they were fidgeting with the cord on the hair dryer. "I, um. You don't have to, and you can go home if you need to - or if you don't wanna stay - but would you maybe want to… stay the night?" Mattie didn't answer immediately, and they kept going. "Like, I get it if you don't want to, we're not that close and the last time we were at a sleepover together it didn't go too well, but you can if you want, and I can drive you home in the morning. But you don't have to. It's okay. Sorry. Fuck, I'm sorry."

"Sure," Mattie said quickly. "I mean, I don't know what my parents will say, but I want to. If that's okay?"

Kate smiled, almost nervously. "Cool. Okay."

Kate fiddled with the hair dryer for a few minutes while Mattie persuaded her parents to let her stay.

"Okay, I have the all clear," Mattie said, shutting her phone off.

Kate smiled, chewing her lower lip. "Awesome. I- are you sure?"

"Yeah!"  _ Wow, I actually want to have a sleepover with Kate Dalton? A week ago, I wouldn't have believed it. _

"Okay, so I kind of have never dried my hair in my life?" Kate said, moving on a little quickly. "I hated it when I was a kid because I didn't like how hot it was and then just never got in the habit."

"I know how," Mattie assured her.

While Mattie dried her hair, Kate laughed a little. "Jesus, this feels, like, not normal," she commented. Mattie could barely hear her, but didn't say anything. "Like, Eva's the only one who's slept over in forever and we don't normally like, do each other's hair or whatever, it's all kinda just… well, I mean, she likes playing with my hair but that doesn't count - never mind. And before her..." They trailed off, and Mattie decided to take over the conversation.

"I did, for awhile," she told Kate. "When I was in, I think sixth grade? My friends all wanted to be like the teenage girls we saw in movies and stuff. Sleepovers were all just gossip and doing each other's hair and painting nails and stuff. We never really did anything fun, they just wanted to fit that cool teenage girl aesthetic even though we were eleven."

Kate laughed. "My sister was like that. Chloe. I mean, I don't really remember that phase because I was four, but Kelly's told me about it and showed me pictures."

"I feel like a lot of preteen girls are like that. My sister is getting dangerously close to that phase."

"How many siblings do you have?"

"Just the two. My brother is twelve, and my sister is ten. You?"

"Only the two sisters. Kelly is twenty six, Chloe is twenty four." Kate sighed. Mattie could sense complicated layers to their relationship with her sisters, but decided not to push.

"Here, that should be good enough. I can dry my own hair," Mattie said, sitting up.

Kate ran their fingers through her hair. "Damn, that took like, five minutes."

"Well, that is the idea of hair dryers." Mattie finished brushing her hair out real quick.

Kate hopped up on the counter, swinging their legs back and forth. Neither of them spoke while Mattie dried her hair, but it wasn't awkward. Kate was easy to just hang out with in silence.

"Okay, now the fun part." Kate picked up the blue tube. "Color."

They both got halfway through, standing next to each other in the mirror, when Mattie realized, "I  _ think _ we were supposed to use gloves."

Kate looked at their blue hands. "Oh. Probably. Eh, whatever."

Mattie couldn't help but laugh, and soon they were both cracking up.

~

"I like the pink," Kate commented as Mattie brushed out her hair. Kate had steadfastly refused the hair dryer again ("it's too hot! It's uncomfortable, I hate it"), but Mattie had dried her own hair, eager to see the color. "It looks nice on you."

"Thank you!" Mattie looking in the mirror, running her fingers through it. "It is pretty. You know, we could see what yours looks like-"

"Not happening. Nice try, though." Kate's phone buzzed, and she made a face. "Ugh, it's my mom."

"You should answer it."

"Probably." Kate stepped out of the bathroom, leaning against the hallway wall. Mattie could hear, but tried not to eavesdrop. She didn't do a very good job.

"Hey, Mom." Pause. "Mom, you've got to be kidding, it's like 8:30!" Pause. "Okay, I know." Pause. "That was because her shift ran late last week." Pause. "I'm not watching any kids for you at 9 at night while you get drunk with their parents." Pause. "I have a friend over!" Pause. "Yes, I do. You know Mattie Wheeler." Pause. "Don't talk about that." Pause. "Mom, stop." Pause. " _ Stop. _ " Pause. "Fine, whatever. I don't care. But me and Mattie are hanging out and we're not watching those spoiled brats." Pause. "Okay, I'm sorry." Pause. "Yeah, I love you too."

Kate hung up and took a deep breath, and Mattie wondered what her mom had said.

"Is everything okay?" Mattie asked quietly.

Kate ran a hand through their wet hair. "Yeah, it's just… my mom and I don't get along that well. She doesn't like that I have a girlfriend, and she doesn't understand how I use two sets of pronouns, and we're just not great."

"Oh."

"If you're going to apologise, don't. I hate when people apologise for things just because they don't know what else to say." Kate took another deep breath. "Anyways, she and Dad were at some work party tonight and now they're bringing some friends over for drinks, and the friends have seven year old twins I've had to watch before, and I hate them.  _ But _ I refuse to subject you to that torment, so we're free for the night."

"Okay."

Kate leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes for a moment, then stood up straight and managed a grin at Mattie. "Okay, we probably should clean up."

"There's dye all over the towels," Mattie said, holding one of them up.

"Which is why we used those specific towels. My parents don't care if those get stained." She reached to take the towels from Mattie, and Mattie couldn't help gasping.

"Oh, no, your hands!"

Kate studied them. "Wow, it looks like I got a really bad case of hypothermia or something."

"Are they gonna be mad?"

"Hopefully not? I'll deal with it." Kate tossed the empty dye bottles in the trash. "Yours aren't too bad."

"I did switch to gloves halfway through," Mattie pointed out.

"I probably should have done that, too." Kate shrugged. "Too late."

Mattie couldn't help laughing. Kate grinned at her, wiggling her blue fingers, and Mattie laughed harder.

"C'mon, are you hungry?" Kate asked. They slid down the banister  _ again _ , and Mattie sighed.

"Do you ever just use the stairs?" she asked.

"Not unless I have to."

~

Kate's mom had hair that was clearly dyed blonde (not that well) and a too tight smile. Mattie felt weird when she looked at her. Kate's dad was tall, which was weird considering Kate was basically the same height as Mattie (read: short), and had a voice that filled the entire house and bounced off the walls. Mattie wondered what it was like being their kid - they weren't exactly like her parents. At all, really.

Kate clearly didn't get along with their parents that well. There were no hugs, no comments on their hair, just a "remember to clean up when you're done cooking."

"Like I said, we're not that close," Kate muttered when they went downstairs. "Popcorn?"

"Um, sure?"

"Wanna pick out a movie?" Kate gestured to the living room. "We've got Netflix, and Disney+."

"Okay." Mattie could hear Kate in the kitchen, could hear the microwave humming and eventually some popping. Kate didn't come out to join Mattie even though the popcorn took at least a couple minutes, and Mattie let her have a moment alone.

"What'd you pick?" Kate asked, grabbing a blanket from the arm of the couch and tossing it to Mattie.

"The Prom!"

"Oh, I've seen that one." Kate grabbed another blanket for herself. "It's funny."

"I haven't seen it yet, but I've really wanted to."

~

"Mattie? You good?"

Mattie was stuck staring at the screen, dumbfounded.

"... Mattie?"

" _ That was amazing oh my God. _ " Mattie jumped to her feet. "I- wow! Oh my God! The part with the fake prom? And the phone call? And Emma and Alyssa alone in the gym right before the real prom? And Mr Hawkins was AMAZING and oh my God I loved it!"

Kate laughed as Mattie fell back onto the couch.

"I need to see that like a million more times," Mattie told her.

"That is high praise."

Mattie sat up. "Hey, your hair is dry! It looks nice!"

Kate touched it. "Oh, it is. I like it." They pulled a hair tie off their wrist and tied it up in a ponytail.

"I am  _ full _ of energy after that," Mattie declared. "I don't think I'll ever sleep again."

Kate raised an eyebrow. "Ever again?"

"Nope. I can subsist on The Prom alone."

"Really."

"Yeah!"

Kate gestured to the TV. "Eva sent me the bootleg of the Broadway version."

"Isn't that illegal?"

"Technically, yes, but who cares?"

"I wanna watch it!"

~

"Never sleep again, huh?" Kate asked softly. Mattie, of course, didn't answer, since she was fast asleep on the other end of the couch. "That lasted long."

Kate switched off the TV and pulled out her phone, snapping a quick picture to text the team gc. They debated bringing Mattie upstairs, but it wasn't like there was a better place to sleep than the couch, so Kate decided to just leave her there.

ew tigers

annleigh: Awww! Is she staying the night?

ye

cai: Thank you for not killing her

hey fuck you

reese: I love her hair!!! 🤩🤩🤩

v🌈❤️: Send pics of yours pleeeeaaaaase I am begging you

[image attachment]

reese: THAT LOOKS AMAZING !!!!!!!!! 🤩🤩🤩😁😁💯💯💯

v🌈❤️: ajwnenejnsnsndndmsnnsndbdnsb oh my god wjsjenennejekrmrmfmfndn hi I am so gay

cai: That is all over your neck

you should see my hands

[image attachment]

v🌈❤️: Normally when people dye their hair, they use these things called "gloves," have you heard of them?

cai: lmao

annleigh: KATHERINE

annleigh: OH MY GOODNESS

annleigh: WHY

mattie used gloves for most of hers

i simply chose not to

cai: dumbass

thank you

i try


End file.
